Garai plays Bel Rowley in The Hour, a hit drama set in a 1950s British newsroom and although her character will still be present, the actress has promised fans that there will enough change to keep things interesting in the new series.

Speaking to Collider, Romola Garai discussed everything from the historical time-setting of The Hour to the drama’s new character, played by The Thick Of It star Peter Capaldi .

‘There are some significant changes. We have a new Head of News, played by Peter Capaldi. He’s a big new character,’ she said.

‘The first season of The Hour concentrated on the Suez Crisis, which was a relic of the empire conflict. This season is much more about the Cold War.

‘We have two main threads to the story – celebrity and the London underworld of the time with the arms race between America and Russia that Britain was sucked into.

‘Those two themes combine in the story. Freddie (Ben Whishaw) has a new love interest. Bel (Garai) has a new love interest. Hector (Dominic West) falls apart at the seams. There’s a lot of change.’

The new series of The Hour, set in 1957, is due to return to BBC1 this autumn.